The game of golf is usually played on a large course and preferrably in good climate. Players of the game frequently desire a means in which they can practice their skills in an indoor format during inclement weather or in a small outside area such as a back yard. The prior art has addressed this problem in numerous ways. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,601,406--Giusti, a back yard golf game is disclosed where the player stands on a mat and drives Velcro.RTM. covered plastic balls at an upright target. The player uses a normal set of clubs and depending upon which club he uses, the ball he hits will either go in a relatively low trajectory or a higher trajectory.
Within this patent various rules exist for determining the equivalent yardage that the player has achieved in hitting the plastic ball as compared to the distance he/she would have hit, had he been playing with a standard golf ball. By doing various computations and following the rules the player can complete an entire game of golf.
Depending on where the ball attaches to the upright target, in the Giusti patent, the player must either move foreward or backward along the fairway in order to adjust for his distance from the hole represented on the upright target. In the reference game, the player is constantly adjusting in his movement to or from the target for the various trajectories of the ball resulting from the use of different clubs. As in an actual game of golf, a ball of constant weight hit by different golf clubs will rise higher or fly further depending upon the club used.
A second approach to help one learn the game of golf without actually having to go to a golf course is addressed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,384--Barber. In this patent varying sizes of golf balls, which also vary in weight, are used to teach the game of golf. The patent also contemplates the use of oversized golf clubs. The purpose of the patent is to aid one, particularly the young, the aged, and perhaps even the handicapped to learn the game of golf. This is done by giving them balls that are larger and easier to hit. In this manner they may concentrate more upon their swing in the actual playing of the game, and less upon hitting the ball. This patent is addressed to one learning the game of golf and not to one who is already knowledgeable in the game and desiring to play it in confined spaces or in a small area such as a backyard. Also, the weight changes of the golf balls in this patent are strictly a result of the differences in the size of the balls. The differences in the weights of the balls serves no purpose in their use.
To the knowledge of applicant, the prior art fails to address a means or game in which a golfer, regardless of the club he is using, may remain in one location and hit balls approximately the same distance.